Geepman Posted April 22, 2020 I would like to know if anyone has done a diesel conversion on the nv3500. I have come to find out that the 5.6L v-8 is gutless especially when towing. Has anyone done or seen the 5.0L conversion done on these vans? My 04 F350 that was completely loaded out to 17k plus (truck cclb 4x4, with a car hauler behind it with a 6500 pound Diesel Jeep crawler on the car hauler) was still managing 17 mpg while my wife’s nv3500 only loaded to 12k (that is van and trailer together) maybe at max managed 12 mpgs maybe. Any suggestions would be great. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted April 23, 2020 12 mpg actually is pretty good for towing with a NVP. Prior to the intro of the Titan diesel, Cummins installed diesels in 1 or 2 NVs for their use. No useful details. There is a post here that the diesel was not specifically designed for the Titan. Something to do with a Canadian bus... Another NV diesel project was an extreme 4x4 cargo van conversion. The Nissan produced video may still be available on their commercial site. Again not much useful info. New Chevy gas V8? 1 ASD Dad reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted April 23, 2020 12MPG is freaking fantastic towing. I get around 8 towing a 30 foot 7600 pound toyhauler camper. I get 12-13 in daily driving with AT tires and a large roof rack. Only one to do a conversion is Cummins themselves as a test mule (they used it for a shuttle van) and the aftermarket conversion Rad talks about above. I remember it was not cheap and did not just drop in. Drive any gas motor vehicle towing and your mileage will tank. Its not a NV thing, its a gas vs diesel. My Tundra got the same mileage towing a similar camper. My inlaws newish Silverado also gets the same towing a smaller camper. It does great not towing (he gets 28 mpg on the highway) but gas motors dont like towing anything, they have to spin at higher rpm to get into the meat of the torque curve. A F350 is a totally different class of vehicle. Compare the NV with a 5.0 F150 or even the Ecoboost when towing. The NV overall is in its own class, there are no other large vans that can tow what it can and haul a lot of people and gear inside. Since Ford stopped the Excursion and Chevy stopped the 3/4T Burbs to non-commercial sales there isnt anything else to pick from new. 1 radin2son reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andy_george Posted April 25, 2020 A gas motor like the 5.6 does a fine job for occasional towing. And considering that gas is cheaper than diesel and the gas motors themselves are more dependable with no after treatment or urea, the gains in cheaper operating and maintenance will almost always be to your advantage in the long run. 1 radin2son reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted April 25, 2020 (edited) Geepman, Will your wife give up her NV for your project? If not, you should be be able to pick up a 2012 for $ and spend $$$$$ for the conversion. Let us know how it works out. Edited April 25, 2020 by radin2son Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted April 30, 2020 (edited) Sportsmobileforum.com posted a related topic, converting a recently purchased 2004 Ford SMB 250, 5.4 gas, 2wd to 6.0 diesel with 4x4 diy conversion from Timberline. Donor truck was F350 4x4 from Craig’s list. Diesel being rebuilt by Devil Mountain Diesel. They will do the 4x4 conversion as well. Besides $$$$$, only 2 negative posts, both regarding the 6.0 diesel. One said it cost $10k to rebuild and not “bulletproofed”; the other was a let me know how this turns out. Rebuild needed soon. Directly below low this was a post for a 2002 7.3 diesel for $59k. Quigley 4x4 conversion with 217k miles. Lots of aluminess on it... A Ram Cummins donor? Edited April 30, 2020 by radin2son Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
